<p>So I'm currently a hs junior, and I'm getting into this whole college search thing. I'm thinking a decisive and/or high quality college would be pretty cool, but I'm open to others too. I'm thinking of going into pre med. Unweighted cumulative gpa is 3.93, weighted core is 4.40. I am currently in:</p>
<p>AP US Gov
AP Bio
AP Chem
British Lit H
French IV
PreCalculus H
Highest concert band</p>
<p>I haven't taken the ACT/SAT yet, so no scores there. Suggestions?</p>
<p>Did you take PSAT or PLAN (is that what they call the practice ACT still?)? </p>
<p>What does a “decisive” college mean to you?</p>
<p>What else is important to you in a college? Does it matter where it is in the US? If it’s urban, suburban, or rural? Big, medium, or small? Warm climate or cool climate? Any ECs you’d like to be able to continue?</p>
<p>Do you have any majors in mind? Pre-med is not a major. It’s simply a set of courses you must take to apply to medical school. Knowing what you’re interested in would help us give you appropriate suggestions.</p>
<p>What is your home state and what can your family afford?</p>
<p>I took the PSAT last year and got 192; I took it again this year and I don’t know what I got yet (the score will most likely be much higher than before). I never took the PLAN, but I feel like I would do better on the ACT than the SAT. I’m aiming a little bit higher because I know I want to be in an environment where I can avail myself to more intellectual resources and be with people with similar attitudes towards education. Basically, I don’t want to go to a community college/various state schools. I live in Iowa, so being close(r) to home would be nice, but I don’t really want to go to school in Iowa (the only ones I could think of off the top of my head would be Grinnell, Wartburg, maybe Drake or Luther). I think being in a college that was near a city but not in it would be nice; sometimes you need quiet, sometimes you need loud. I don’t really care if it is small or not, so medium would be fine (not really that important to me). Weather isn’t my first priority either. I wouldn’t have to rule out schools in Illinois or anything because I’m so acclimated to these harsh, Midwestern winters :P. I really like jazz band and band. I also run, but I’m not sure if I would be good/committed enough to be on the school’s NCAA team.</p>
<p>I might do a major in biology or chemistry or something like that, not sure yet. I’m currently faring pretty well in those AP classes right now. I’m not sure yet on the financial situation yet. My dad has a decently high income, but various factors kind of deter us from paying a ton…nonetheless my parents encourage me to find a college that would suit my interests and educational desires.</p>
<p>Hmm. I’ll assume your SAT or ACT ends up in the 33/2200 range. </p>
<p>For reaches:
UPenn
JHU
Cornell
Tufts
Maybe Swarthmore?
Northwestern
Perhaps Vanderbilt and Rice, if you don’t mind their locations.</p>
<p>For matches:
UCLA (high match/reach)
UNC- Chapel Hill (high match/reach)
UMich (high match/reatch)
Wake Forest
University of Rochester
Minnesota- Twin Cities
Drexel
BU</p>
<p>Safeties/low targets:
Michigan State
Penn State
University of Pittsburgh
Mercer University (auto entry to med school program, if you qualify)</p>
<p>^ Nice list though it totally ignores cost. UCLA, UMich, Penn State would all cost $50K/year. Mich State might as well. </p>
<p>OP, with Premed you would do well to keep the undergrad costs way down. Look at Alabama, UAB, Pitt. Minnesota tends to be lower cost than other OOS Us. Also look instate.</p>